1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to trim elements for building structures, and more specifically to stucco (or other suitable material) coated plant-ons used as trim elements on such structures. The present invention comprises a series of embodiments of such plant-on elements, with each including at least one relief formed in the core material within the lath shell. The relief allows the stucco material to flow behind and encapsulate the porous lath at the relief areas, thereby providing better adhesion of the stucco to the lath than in previous plant-ons. Methods of forming the lath and assembling and installing the plant-on are also disclosed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Trim elements have been used for ages, for the architectural enhancement of building structures. Such trim components are used around door, window, and vent openings, soffits and cornices, lateral bands between floors of multiple story buildings, and other areas, in order to break up the otherwise plain and unadorned appearance of such structures.
Stucco, or a similar material, is commonly used as a finish coating upon many structures. It is especially popular in the southwestern United States, where it may be used as a simulation for adobe structures, but stucco and similar materials are used in many other areas as well. “Plant-on” trim elements comprising laths applied to the exterior structure and then coated with stucco, are often used with such structures to enhance their appearance.
Various different techniques have been developed in the past for forming and installing such plant-on elements. Almost all of these techniques result in plant-ons which are not optimized for their intended use. Many, if not most, conventional plant-ons comprise a solid core material of wood or foam, which is encased in a closely fitting foraminous lath material. A major problem which occurs with conventional plant-ons is the lack of adhesion of the stucco or other coating material to the underlying lath, particularly at corners where chipping of the finish coating is most likely to occur. A major cause of such lack of adhesion is the lack of space behind the lath material for the stucco or other material to flow therein due to the core material filling the volume within the lath, thus limiting the amount of grip between the stucco and the lath.
As a result, some contractors have eliminated the core material from the lath, with the lath interior comprising an empty space. This allows the stucco or other material to flow around and through the passages in the porous lath material, to encapsulate the lath and provide a good mechanical grip between the stucco and the lath. However, the lack of any core material within the lath shell results in a relatively weak structure that is easily damaged by relatively slight impacts. While the lath material is likely relatively flexible, the stucco or similar material applied thereto is relatively brittle when dry. The relatively thin stucco coating over a thin lath screen does not provide any significant structural strength. Relatively small impacts can cause the lath to flex, thereby cracking and chipping the overlying stucco material adhered thereto.
The maintenance of the exterior coating is critical to the appearance of such trim components. While virtually all building codes require ferrous metal components, such as lath and similar devices, to be formed of galvanized material in order to preclude rusting, the galvanized coating cannot provide indefinite protection for the underlying metal. The lath material is often scratched or abraded during handling and installation, which results in the removal of the galvanized coating in at least some areas. When other protective coatings, such as stucco, paint, etc. are chipped away or crack, moisture and oxygen can attack the ferrous metal and cause it to rust. The result is unsightly rust stains seeping from the cracks or chips in the stucco material coating the lath.
The present invention provides a solution to the above described problem by providing one or more (preferably a plurality of) reliefs in the core material encased within the surrounding foraminous lath of the plant-on. In the present invention, any convex edges of the core material are removed, thereby providing an open space between the edges of the core material and the overlying lath. When the lath is coated with stucco or similar material, the fluid stucco flows through the passages in the foraminous lath sheet and into the relief space(s) of the core, to encapsulate the lath structure along the relief areas of the core. This construction provides the desired resistance to damage provided by the inclusion of a core material within the lath, while also providing complete flowthrough of the stucco or other material along the edges of the lath to provide better adhesion for the coating material to the lath. The present invention also includes methods of forming, assembling, and installing a plant-on element having cores with such reliefs formed therein.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventors are aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,288,962 issued on Sep. 15, 1981 to Harvey H. Kavanaugh, titled “Method Of Forming Structural Walls And Roofs,” describes a series of embodiments wherein expanded polystyrene foam is applied between wall panels and/or sprayed upon roof sheathing. In one embodiment, expansion strips are installed upon the roof before a coating material is applied. The outer portion of the expansion strips remains exposed, unlike the lath components of the present invention. Moreover, the Kavanaugh assembly teaches away from the present invention, in that the Kavanaugh expansion strips are intended to allow relative movement between components to reduce cracking of the surrounding material. No such movement is provided in the plant-ons of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,510,726 issued on Apr. 16, 1985 to Milton H. MacDonald, Jr., titled “Insulated Building Structure And Method For Assembling Same,” describes a double stud wall construction having foam block insulation installed within the double wall. The exterior studs protrude outwardly beyond the insulation material, but the lateral space between the studs is covered or filled with sheathing or foam to provide a smooth, unbroken wall. No plant-ons or other protuberances are disclosed in the finished wall construction of MacDonald, Jr.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,424 issued on Jul. 9, 1991 to Donald D. Hingos, titled “Decorative Quoin,” describes several embodiments of a prefabricated decorative quoin structure which may be applied to a completed building structure before the finish coat of stucco or other material is applied. Hingos provides a mesh lath, and applies cement, stucco, or similar material to the porous mesh so that the material flows through the porosity of the mesh to completely encapsulate the mesh. In some embodiments (FIGS. 3 and 4), Hingos places some lightweight foam material atop the initial cement or stucco material, overlying the base screen material. He then completes the buildup by applying another layer of cement or the like over the foam, with an optional screen being placed within the outer layer of cement. The completed assembly is then removed from its mold and applied to the building structure. While Hingos discloses the use of an (optional) screen overlying a foam core, he does not disclose any form of reliefs formed along the edges of the foam (or other) core material within his quoins. As Hingos completely encapsulates the imbedded mesh panels within his quoins, the structural strength of his quoins appears to be due primarily to the thickness of the cement or other material applied, as Hingos states that his quoins must be constructed using molds to hold the uncured material in place until it dries. In contrast, the present plant-ons comprise a relatively thin coating or very few coatings of stucco or the like over an underlying lath, with the core edge reliefs providing the additional thickness of material only at the edges. This provides the additional strength where required, while also providing a relatively lightweight structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,218,798 issued on Jun. 15, 1993 to Peter I. Bentivegna et al., titled “Exterior Insulation Facing System,” describes a wall structure formed of corrugated panels, with insulating foam sheathing applied to the exterior and a stucco or similar coating applied over the sheathing. No decorative exterior attachments (e.g. quoins, plant-ons, etc.) are disclosed by Bentivegna et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,843 issued on Jan. 9, 1996 to John E. Kreikemeier, titled “Lath For Wall Or Ceiling Construction,” describes a series of embodiments of plastic lath material. Each of the embodiments includes some means of spacing the planar lath sheet material away from the underlying structure, in order that the plaster or other finish material will flow around the lath for better adhesion. However, Kreikemeier does not disclose any form of plant-on trim attachments or any core of such attachments having reliefs therein, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,023 issued on Jul. 30, 1996 to Howard W. Jaenson, titled “Lathing,” describes a wire screen lath having building paper interwoven therewith. The passages in the paper through which the lath wires pass, enable the plaster or similar material to flow therethrough to encapsulate the lath and at least some of the construction paper. However, Jaenson does not disclose lath material formed to provide a three dimensional shape and having a core material with reliefs, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,986 issued on May 6, 1997 to Mike Mansfield et al., titled “Skeletal Reinforcing Manufacture,” describes various embodiments of plant-ons having various constructions. All have the common theme of externally extending ridges along each of their outer corners, however. These ridges facilitate finish plastering by allowing a smooth faced trowel to be applied to the plaster, stucco, or other material, with the trowel blade riding along the raised guide ridges. The problem with the exposure of the underlying metal lath material, i.e. eventual rusting, has been noted further above. The present invention avoids this potential problem by completely covering the underlying lath material with stucco or similar material, and insuring that the stucco is firmly adhered to the underlying lath by means of the reliefs provided in at least some points or edges along the underlying core material. Such reliefs are not disclosed by Mansfield et al. in any of the embodiments of their building component having core material therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,637,384 issued on Jun. 10, 1997 to Phillip H. Boot, titled “Plasterboard Support And Cavity Spacer,” describes a means of attaching wallboard panels or the like to a masonry wall. Boot provides a series of metal tracks or channels which are attached to the wall, and which provide a firm base for securing the overlying wallboard panels to the wall. The metal tracks are filled with foam plastic material, or in other embodiments the tracks are secured directly into grooves formed in the insulating foam panels attached to the masonry wall. The tracks described in the Boot disclosure are completely concealed within the wall structure, with no externally disposed decorative plant-ons being disclosed by Boot.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,685,116 issued on Nov. 11, 1997 to James H. Bradshaw et al., titled “Preshaped Form,” describes the use of expanded metal material for the lath, with the lath bent to form the desired cross section and a construction paper backing applied to the interior of the lath. The lath is hollow, i.e., no core material is provided therein, unlike the present invention. The paper backing of the lath precludes significant flowthrough of the plaster, stucco, or other material applied to the lath, thereby limiting the adhesion of the finish material to the lath. The Bradshaw et al. forms, with their paper backing, lack of any relief areas for flowthrough of the finishing material, and raised guide ridges in some embodiments, more closely resemble the assembly of the Mansfield '986 U.S. patent discussed further above, than they do the present plant-on forms.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,697,195 issued on Dec. 16, 1997 to Gary J. Maylon, titled “Plaster Security Barrier System,” describes a relatively flat and thin layup for application to a ceiling structure or the like. The Maylon system includes an expanded metal screen having structural paper backing, which is applied to the interior of a ceiling structure. The screen is then covered with plaster, stucco, or similar material. The Maylon system is relatively flat, with no three-dimensional buildout as provided by the present invention. Moreover, the flat and thin configuration of the Maylon assembly precludes the placement of any core material therebehind, with no space for any form of relief cutouts to provide greater adhesion for the finishing material being provided by Maylon.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,059 issued on Jan. 23, 2001 to Robert A. Cantarano et al., titled “Modular Concrete Building System,” describes a large number of embodiments of prefabricated, interlocking wall panels. All have smooth exteriors, with no additions thereto such as the plant-ons of the present invention. No exterior plant-ons having external laths and foam cores are disclosed by Cantarano et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,233,892 issued on May 22, 2001 to Vincent R. Tylman, titled “Structural Panel System,” describes various embodiments of panels having composite shells with foam cores. No lath screen or application of finishing stucco or plaster to the panel system is disclosed by Tylman. The only external attachment to the Tylman panels is a cap installed along the protruding peripheral ridges of the panels when used for roofing.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,293,068 issued on Sep. 25, 2001 to James T. Harrington, Jr., titled “Foam Panel And Channel Concrete Form System,” describes an integral wall molding or casting system serving as the form for casting a concrete wall. The only disclosure of any form of external finish is the mention of striations in the external surface of the form, to provide better adhesion for finishing materials applied thereto. Harrington, Jr. does not disclose any form of three-dimensional build-out of his wall structure, nor the use of lath material overlying a foam core for constructing such a plant-on or build-out, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,566 issued on Jul. 15, 2003 to Daniel W. Rodlin, titled “Preshaped Form,” is a continuation of the '116 U.S. patent to Bradshaw et al., with Rodlin being the second inventor in the Bradshaw et al. U.S. patent. The disclosures are closely related between the two patents, with Rodlin adding some additional embodiments in the '566 U.S. patent. The discussion provided further above of the differences between the devices of the Bradshaw et al. '116 U.S. patent and the present invention is seen to apply here as well.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,609,341 issued on Aug. 26, 2003 to Gary J. Maylon et al., titled “Contoured Stucco Reveal,” describes a series of channels which may be secured to a wall, with the space between the channels being filled with stucco or the like. No lath or core material is disclosed. The channels themselves define an inset space between stucco panels, rather than the opposite build-out effect provided by the present plant-ons.
Finally, U.S. patent Publication No. 2003/79,429 published on May 1, 2003 to Daniel W. Rodlin, titled “Preshaped Form,” is a continuation of the same chain of patents and applications of the '116 Bradshaw et al. and '566 Rodlin U.S. patents discussed further above. The disclosure is substantially the same as that of the Bradshaw et al. '116 and Rodlin '566 U.S. patents. Accordingly, the discussion of the '116 U.S. patent to Bradshaw et al. further above is seen to apply here as well.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus plant-on trim elements and methods solving the aforementioned problems are desired.